First time buyers in London

julicorn

Maybe you could post the 2s and 3s from your survey here, so people can give some advice on how much of an issue they are likely to realistically be? As AdrianC said, those are really common, so it's not unlikely you'll get similar reports on your future flats too. 

lonibra

OP, there's a glut of 1-2 bed flats with no outdoor space on the market in Greater London at the moment, a lot of them with motivated vendors who are keen to sell up and move out north with flexible working.

I don't know what your budget is and whether you have any preferences as to the ethnic makeup of the area, but the areas I like with quick Central line connections to the city and loads of green space are the E11 (Leytonstone) area, the area between Leytonstone and Forest gate stations, and some pockets of Redbridge.

Curiousbuyer123

@julicorn @AdrianC sure thing, cellar needs repointing, high damp meter readings in walls, all windows and doors are rotten (could be cause of some damp, also strange things regarding the split of the building, parts belonging to leaseholder/freeholder but I expect this is normal in London, also issues with ventilation under the floor, we also noticed that there’s some differences in ceiling heights throughout the property by a few ft, also a very large oak tree very close proximity to the property. We are new to this and maybe if we intended somewhere to be the forever home I would be happy to put in work but I’m w bit put off - only thing is now we look for a newer build the service charge can be up to 200pcm haha - London 

HNHN

How about Stratford - very reasonable and easy to commute into central London or Woolwich - cheap, a bit far but with the upcoming crossrail, it's not too bad.

AdrianC

Curiousbuyer123 said:

@julicorn @AdrianC sure thing, cellar needs repointing, high damp meter readings in walls, all windows and doors are rotten (could be cause of some damp, also strange things regarding the split of the building, parts belonging to leaseholder/freeholder but I expect this is normal in London, also issues with ventilation under the floor, we also noticed that there’s some differences in ceiling heights throughout the property by a few ft, also a very large oak tree very close proximity to the property 

Were none of these obvious on your viewing, pre-offer?

Curiousbuyer123

@AdrianC not to me no, the damp was covered by paintings on the wall and if I’m honest as I’ve always rented I’ve never been in a position to have to look out for things like this but it’s been a good experience to learn from for sure. To be fair neither of us really knew what to look for as such, will bring my partners dad (a builder) in future. I think we are probably a bit naïve to be fair - especially me and paired with the excitement of it all I didn’t notice these things... unfortunate but we live and learn 👎🏼😥

AdrianC

You didn't even notice the tree or the rotten windows and doors?

I'm not sure why different ceiling heights is a bad thing...

Curiousbuyer123

@AdrianC nope! They were painted and I didn’t notice it’s mostly in the corners, the tree honestly I had no ideas about trees effecting the buildings we have only ever lived in blocks of flats before and never been on the ground floor - feel quite stupid now but in future we know what to look for lol

Cakeguts

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/78954489#/map  How about NW London?

london21

Curiousbuyer123 said:

Does anyone else find that estate agents assume you’re young and dumb? Just had an awful experience with misleading estate agents and a terrible level 2 survey so the search continues.

Anyway - does anyone have any recommendations for nice areas/boroughs in London to purchase a property as a first time buyer? Our budget isn’t huge so our previous residency (Islington) is out of the question but somewhere in zone 3 that is easy enough to get into the city would work great. Currently my partner is full time in bham and I’m between bham and Guildford as I work in London, all advice welcome! It seems south is a bit cheaper/you get more for your money... 

Some areas. Better researching online and possibly visiting  areas around London. Depending on your budget some areas Wimbledon, Wandsworth, Highgate, Charlton, and woolwich dockyard